Workshops & Events
View past Book Arts Program workshops.
View our signup and refund policy.
Relicensure points for educators are available from the Utah State Board of Education for all workshops. For more information: Email or call 801-585-6019.
Scholarship Opportunities
Utah K–12 Educators and
University of Utah Students!
The Book Arts Program is pleased to offer a limited number of community workshop scholarships to currently enrolled University of Utah students and Utah K–12 educators. Two scholarships are available for each workshop, one for each type of recipient. Applicants who have not already been awarded a Book Arts Program community workshop scholarship for the current academic year are eligible to apply, and can submit additional applications for more than one workshop. If you are a K–12 educator in Utah or an enrolled University of Utah student, you are eligible to apply!
Applications must be completed in full by eligible applicants and are accepted on a rolling basis up to one month before the workshop. Recipients will be chosen at random from the pool of eligible applicants for each category of recipient. Book Arts Program staff will inform recipients at least three weeks in advance of the workshop. Recipients are responsible for any costs related to materials and tools outside of the workshop fee.
2025 In-Person Workshops
July
Book Arts for K–12 Educators
Allison Chapman
Wednesday & Thursday, July 30–31
10am–5pm
SOLD OUT
This workshop is free and reserved for K–12 Utah educators.
Don’t identify as an artist, but interested in bringing book arts into elementary or secondary classrooms? Join us for this two-day intensive with guest educator, Allison Chapman, and discover how book arts are inherently multi-disciplinary. No previous experience is necessary, but all skill levels are welcome to create both folded and sewn book structures. Emphasis is placed on age-appropriate tools and techniques so that all students are successful in creating books that are bound to be loved. Project samples incorporate science, social studies, English and math lessons and are designed with ease of preparation in mind so that teachers and students can get to the fun part!
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Allison Chapman has been printing since she was young, taught by her grandfather in his hobby printshop. As a college student, she interned with Stan Nelson in the Graphic Arts Division of the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History. She then spent over a decade teaching at the Minnesota Center for Book Arts, honing her letterpress craft, and running the K–12 outreach program. After inheriting her grandad's nineteenth-century platen press and collection of vintage images and metal type, Allison founded Igloo Letterpress in Minnesota in 1996. In 2008, she moved to Ohio and found a home in Old Worthington, where the one press grew to ten, outfitting a retail shop, print studio, bookbindery, and hub for creativity. Allison closed the retail shop in 2021, and Igloo is again a home-based business offering custom letterpress printing and hand bookbinding.
AUGUST
Family Book Arts Workshop:
Cyanotype Pocket-Book
Rachel Urban
Saturday, August 16
12–3pm
$60 per participant
Children ages six to eighteen are invited to bring adult friends or family members to explore the art of cyanotypes. The cyanotype is one of the earliest photographic processes, made by placing objects directly on coated paper and exposing it to light, resulting in a detailed and vibrant blue image of the objects’ silhouette without using a camera. Participants create unique compositions of plant specimens, drawings, and found objects, exposing the coated paper to light to make a print. Everyone leaves with one-of-a-kind cyanotypes in a pocket-book and a basic understanding of this accessible and fascinating process.
SEPTEMBER
Fundamentals of Blind & Gold Tooling
on Leather
Samuel Feinstein
Saturday & Sunday, September 13 & 14
11am–6pm
$230
SOLD OUT
Please contact the Book Arts Program to be added to the waitlist.
In this two-day class, students learn the fundamentals of blind tooling and gold tooling on leather, focusing on straight lines and using shellac glaire to affix the gold. Line-work is one of the most important, fundamental, and versatile decorative techniques used on tooled bindings, and is used in both traditional and contemporary designs. Students also have time to explore the use of decorative tools within a limited scope. Each participant leaves with a final plaquette using the techniques covered.
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Samuel Feinstein began bookbinding after a traumatic brain injury left him with constant pain and unable to continue his other pursuits. While the pain remains, he found that binding books by hand was a possibility for him. He trained at the North Bennet Street School in the two-year full-time bookbinding program under Jeff Altepeter, full-time instructor, and Martha Kearsley, part-time instructor. He strives to make his dedication and passion evident in his work, with a particular focus on craftsmanship. He currently lives and works in Chicago, Illinois.
Your Place, Your Pace: Bookmaking Sessions
Join us for Your Place, Your Pace, a selection of pre-recorded workshops designed with your convenience in mind. Enjoy bookmaking from the comfort and privacy of your own home. Each session focuses on a different bookmaking technique and can be completed in one sitting or at your own pace. Take one, or take them all! Participants receive recording links and a materials kit, and are invited to ask questions via email. Availability is limited—don’t miss out!
All workshops are pre-recorded, virtual workshops. Participants receive recording links and materials kit. (Shipping included—an additional $25 will be billed for international shipping.)
Ethiopian Binding
Jazmin Gallegos
$50
Purchase
Flat-Back Case Binding
Emily Tipps
$50
Purchase
Most of the hard-cover books we see at the library, bookstore, or on our shelves at home are casebound. This means that the textblock and cover are created separately then adhered together. In this workshop, participants learn the basics of case binding: sewing a textblock with the French web pattern, lining the spine, building a cloth-covered case, and finally “casing in.” The workshop provides solid ground for exploring different variations; case bindings can be thick or thin, rounded or flat-spined, and covered in cloth, paper, leather, or a combination of materials. These durable bindings make excellent journals, sketchbooks, or housing for longer content. List of required tools. List of Required Tools
Secret Belgian Binding
Amy Thompson
$50
Purchase
Japanese Stab Binding
Jazmin Gallegos
$45
Purchase
As opposed to the stiffness of western paper, traditional Japanese paper allows this side-stitched book to open readily. This workshop presents three sewing patterns, providing participants with the skills to explore dozens of additional patterns in the future. List of required tools. List of Required Tools
Customized Bookcloth: Backing Fabric
Emily Tipps
$55
Purchase
The Perfect Binding
Amy Thompson
$45
Purchase
Content Round-Up: The Drum-Leaf Binding
Marnie Powers-Torrey
$45
Purchase
Accordion Variations
Session 1
Marnie Powers-Torrey
$35
Purchase
Session 2
Marnie Powers-Torrey
$35
Purchase
Endbands: Recipes and Techniques
Emily Tipps
$40
Purchase
The Clamshell Box: A Safe Place for Books
Emily Tipps
$65
Purchase
Coptic Binding
Amy Thompson
$45
Purchase
Long-Stitch with Leather
Amy Thompson
$50
Purchase
The elegant long-stitch has been used for inventive artists’ books and beautiful journals, but don’t be fooled by the apparent complexity of this exposed-sewing binding. Participants receive one set of materials, and the instructor shares examples with an assortment of thread, buttons, covers, and closures to ensure that the long-stitch never gets old. List of Required Tools
The Book Arts Studio is closed for the summer.
See you in the Fall!
Complete hours (including finals week hours, studio closures, and holidays)